Community + Media = an awesome new website

"The mission of KDHX is to build community through media, with diverse and independent voices that enrich the perspectives of our audiences."

Here at KDHX we're finishing up a brand-new website. It's been a year-long project, starting from surveys, research, and whiteboard brainstorms and ending up with a website that will help KDHX fulfill its mission in new ways.

What makes this new website great is that it takes "community through media" to a new level. It provides a new, rich medium through which KDHX DJs, programmers, and producers can deliver and add to their content. At the same time, it creates a space for people to engage with that media and continue the conversation. This means a far richer experience than a website that's just about the social aspect, just about posting media, or just has information about an organization.

I was really quite intimidated by the scope of the project when we started a year ago. Having been in charge of quite a few areas in which I had no background or experience, I've learned an incredible amount over the past year (probably more practical development skills than I gained in four years of college). Reading back over some email exchanges and some meeting notes from the beginning of the project reminds me of just how far we've come.

One of the hardest and most rewarding things we had to do actually had nothing to do with technology. KDHX encompasses a quite diverse group of people; the staff members, volunteers, DJs, producers, interns, and community members I have worked with and consulted brought a wide range of ideas, needs, and passions to the project. This variety is a huge asset to the project and the organization, but coordinating and aligning such different opinions was a challenge. We've had to make sure that everyone's opinion is heard and taken into account while keeping the resulting website from ending up as just the least common denominator of all of these inputs, and it's great to feel that we've accomplished that.

I'm thankful to have had the opportunity to work here with such fun people! My year as an AmeriCorps VISTA is up, but my experiences of both community and media at here at KDHX are an ongoing gift.

[This is actually a post I wrote for our organization's blog to sum up my year here. The new website is at next.kdhx.org!]

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